


Stranded

by Dragongoddess13



Series: CanaryColdAtom Soulmate AU [2]
Category: Arrow (TV 2012), DC's Legends of Tomorrow (TV), The Flash (TV 2014)
Genre: F/M, M/M, Snowed In, Soulmate AU
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-04
Updated: 2019-05-16
Packaged: 2019-11-12 00:07:28
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,783
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18000047
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dragongoddess13/pseuds/Dragongoddess13
Summary: "How attached are either of you to Rip?"Sara, Ray and Leonard are dropped off in their own time by Rip to retrieve an artifact that Leonard had stolen years before. Complications arise and three soulmates find themselves stranded during a blizzard in 2016 Central City. In three days time Rip will send someone to retrieve them, but with each of them determined to get under the other two's skin they may not make it.Sequel to Optimistic Tendencies.





	1. Part I

Stranded

Part I

xXx

 

“How attached are both of you to Rip?” Leonard asked as they entered one of his safe houses in Central. He brushed snow off his parka and stomped his feet on the carpet in the entryway. Ray and Sara were just ahead of him, doing the same. 

“After  _ this  _ disaster of a mission, not very.” Ray replied. Sara simply nodded. 

Rip had brought them back to their own time, sending Leonard after something he’d stolen years before and kept locked up in a stash house for a rainy day. The artifact, as it turned out, belonged to Kendra in her past life and could be useful in their mission against Savage. Unfortunately, one of Leonard’s former associates was staking out the stash house in the hopes that Leonard would show up. Apparently he was under the impression Leonard had betrayed him during a past job. Leonard insisted it wasn’t him, but the guy wasn’t listening and they had to fight their way out, just barely escaping with what they came for. 

To ensure they weren’t followed back to the waverider, they took a long and winding path through the city, doubling back several times. In the process of this, it began to snow, first lightly before devolving into a full blown storm. Now they were forced to hunker down in one of Leonard’s safehouses until it passed. 

“You know, Mr. Snart, that man was your enemy, not Captain Hunter’s.” Stein’s voice sounded through the comms. 

“Get out of here with your facts Stein.” Sara snapped, much to Jax’s amusement. 

“Snart warned us that stash house had been burned a while ago.” Jax replied. 

Rip sighed. “According to Gideon the storm should pass in two days or so. We’ll be able to retrieve you then.” 

“Two days? Are we sure it’s a good idea to wait?” Kendra asked. “That guy sounded pretty angry, I don’t think this storm is going to stop him.”

“The storm might not, but the broken leg and the concussion definitely will.” Leonard sounded proud, turning to Sara who was trying to pull off her boots, balancing on one leg. 

“He pointed a gun at us, he’s lucky that’s all he got.” she grouched. “Ha!” she gave a little cheer as she got her boot off and dropped it on the floor, doing the same for the second one. 

“We can all take this as a rare break.” Rip finally spoke up. “Just get comfortable and we’ll come and get you in a few days.” 

Rather than respond, they all took out their comms out and toss them on the coffee table in the living room. For a safehouse it was surprisingly nice. If anything it looked lived in. 

“Not bad for a safehouse.” Sara said as she collapsed on the sofa. 

“Have some experience with safehouses, Assassin?” Leonard drawled, taking off his parka and hanging it up in the closet near the entryway. 

“I’ve been in my fair share, crook.” she smirked at him, crossing her legs under her. Ray dropped into the seat next to her, looking between them. In the last month since they’d all decided to see where things could lead, the flirting had increased quite a bit, especially between Sara and Leonard. It was kind of fun. With Anna, they had just sort of jumped in, but with Sara and Leonard they were taking their time to get to know each other, like a dance. During their trip to Russia, Ray got the distinct feeling that Leonard’s taunting was his own form of flirting, challenging Ray to one up the thief. Unfortunately Ray hadn’t been up to the challenge just then, but he wasn’t worried. Contrary to popular belief, Ray could, in fact, play dirty. A little skill he cultivated living with two siblings. He had a plan, he just needed to find the right time to execute it. Leonard was still a private man, and Ray knew he wasn’t going to react the same way in public that he would in private, so  _ privacy  _ was the key. 

As for Sara, as it turned out, and much to Ray’s delight, she was very tactile. She was almost like a cat, lounging lazily anywhere she could get comfy, including but not limited to, his bed in the middle of the day, his lap, and cuddled up to his side when she was tired but didn’t want to go back to her own room yet. He was almost sure Sara was playing a game of her own, but he could never tell with her. Surprisingly enough, Leonard was easier to read than Sara was. Hiding behind cute looks and teasing innuendo, he was never really sure if she was messing with him, or just letting the part of herself she’d buried so long ago, out. 

“Point of fact.” Leonard drawled, sprawling out in the arm chair across from them. He was kind of cat like too, contorting his body to fit into spaces that should not have been comfortable to lounge in. “This is not a safehouse.”

“It’s not?” Ray asked, then; “Please tell me we didn’t just break into someone’s house.” 

“He had a key, Ray.” Sara replied before turning a smirk on Leonard. “Leonard Snart, did you bring us to your house?” 

He looked away, shrugging. “Don’t know what state any of my safe houses are in. Figured this was the best bet.” Ray and Sara shared a look, both trying to hold back a smile. 

“I guess we should just get comfortable then. Looks like we’re going to be here for awhile.” Ray spoke up. 

“Well, there’s plenty to do. Books upstairs, tv works, no cable though, got a few movies lying around somewhere. Lisa turned the addition in the back into an in law suite for herself, so there’s three bedrooms upstairs. One is mine the other is an office with a pullout.” Leonard told them, standing from the armchair. “Sent  Lisa a text when we got off the ship, she just left for Keystone this morning, so all the food should still be good.” 

“What about clothes?” Sara asked. 

“I’m sure we can find something.” Leonard replied. He walked across the living room and disappeared into the kitchen. When he came back he had three beers in hand. They sat in silence, Ray picking at the label of his bottle, Sara looking around the room and Leonard watching them discreetly. “Something wrong, Birdie?” Leonard asked, drawing her attention away from a short cabinet behind the sofa. “Didn’t think I owned a house?” it was another challenge, daring her to say something disparaging about the life of thief. He did that sometimes, tried to bait them into putting him down, like he was desperate for a reason to walk away before he was really drawn in. 

Sara leveled him with a knowing look. “No, just wondering where all the embarrassing baby pictures are hidden.” Ray snorted into his beer bottle. “Since you brought it up though, it is a nice house. You’ve certainly got one up on me.” 

“How’s that?” Ray questioned. 

“I don’t have a place of my own. I usually crash with my dad or Laurel when I’m in Star City. My mom when I’m here in Central.” 

“You don’t have a place to live?” 

Sara shook her head. “No, I mean, when I was the Canary I lived behind the clock face in the downtown clock tower, but after I rejoined the League I cleared it out. Then when I died, Nyssa gave all my stuff back to my family. Actually, now that I think about it, I don’t really know where any of that stuff is.” 

Ray was staring at her incredulously. “You don’t know where anything you own is?” 

“I didn’t say that. I know where my knives and swords are.”

Leonard snorted. “Of course you do.”

“What about personal stuff? Pictures, books?” 

“My family has all the important pictures, I know they’re safe with them. And every book I’ve read in the last few years came from the league library.” 

“What about clothes?” Leonard finally spoke up. 

“We live on a time ship that can fabricate anything.” she replied. 

“Okay, but we didn’t always live on a timeship.” Ray said. 

“After I came back, I borrowed some things from my sister and when I left to travel, I had some money in an offshore account I used to buy what I needed.” Sara watched Ray, his expression caught somewhere between gaping shock and concern. “You’re so upset about this.”

“I just… everyone should have a home.” 

Sara shrugged. “It’s not a big deal, Ray. I’ll probably find an apartment or something when this mission is over. For now there’s no point though.” 

Ray didn’t look all that appeased, but he let it go. 

“What about you Raymond, where do you live? You’re legally dead, can’t imagine you can buy a house under those circumstances.” 

“Actually I still have my old apartment from before the accident. I left everything to Felicity, cause I wasn’t about to leave anything to my siblings, but I guess Felicity couldn’t bring herself to clean out my penthouse so it’s all been sitting there since the accident. When I came back I just moved back in.” 

“A penthouse, huh?” Ray nodded. “Next time we get stranded I vote for Star City.” Sara teased. Leonard agreed. 

“We don’t have to be stranded for your guys to come over. I mean, we’re soulmates, no matter what that means now or in the future.” Ray told them. Leonard looked a little uncomfortable again, but Sara was grinning. She didn’t say anything though, simply stretching out, setting her feet in his lap as she leaned back against the arm rest. 

“So, Ray, why wouldn’t you leave anything to your siblings?” Leonard asked. 

Ray shrugged. “We don’t really get along. Never have. My sister’s kind of upset that I didn’t go to business school and then join her and our father in the family business. I mean we love each other, but she always finds a way to throw some backhanded comment at me when we’re together. And then there’s my twin brother who seems to have this indescribable hatred for me.”

“You’re a twin!” Sara exclaimed. He nodded. 

Ray nodded. “I’ve never been able to figure out why Sidney hates me so much. I mean I get not liking me growing up, people were always mixing us up and he didn’t like being part of a “matched set” as he called us, but I kind of figured he would grow out of it when we got older.” 

Sara hummed. “Kind of hard to imagine anyone hating you.” she told him. Leonard seemed to agree, which was surprising all on it’s own. 

“Does seems a little hard to figure out.” Leonard added. “I mean you can certainly get on someone nerves with that whole puppy dog, ray of sunshine attitude, but I can’t think of a single person who isn’t an enemy hating you.” 

“I think that’s the nicest thing you’ve ever said to me.” Ray told him, and Sara wasn’t sure Leonard picked up on it, but she got the distinct feeling Ray was teasing him. 

Leonard grimace and looked away, taking a long drink out of his beer. “Don’t get used to it boy scout.” 

“Eagle Scout.” Ray and Sara replied simultaneously, before sharing a grin. Sara leaned forward and kissed him on the cheek, then got up and stretched. 

“Do you have a bathtub?” she asked.

“Upstairs, second door on the right.” Leonard replied. 

“I am going to go warm up, try not to kill each other while I’m gone.” she teased, disappearing up the the stairs. 

When she was gone silence descended on the living room. Leonard seemed a lot less uncomfortable now, which boded well for Ray. At least it did for what he had planned. 

Ray sighed and set his beer on the coffee table. “Warming up doesn’t sound like a bad idea.” he said, standing and stretching much the same way Sara had. 

“You can try, but I can’t promise Sara won’t try to stab you if you walk in on her.” Leonard smirked. 

Ray huffed a laugh. “Nah, I like my way better. Don’t suppose you have an weights or anything like that?” 

Leonard had an excellent poker face, but Ray was a genius and counting cards wasn’t as difficult as some would have you believe. “Hall closet. Think Mick might have left some in there.” 

“Thanks.” he said chipperly, disappearing down the hall. Leonard heard the closet door roll open and then a muffled whoop of triumph. 

Ray really needed to stop being so adorable. If Leonard wasn’t careful he was going to damage his image irrevocably. In fact they both just needed to stop. Between Sara’s incessant flirting with both of them and her tactile nature with Ray (he was grateful she respected  _ his  _ boundaries), to Ray’s unerring naivety that Leonard found unfathomably cute, he was unequivocally screwed. It didn’t help matters that Ray was handsome in a way that was definitely Leonard’s type or that Sara was gorgeous whether all dressed up or covered in the blood of her enemies (also his type), and it certainly didn’t help that they both looked beautiful together. 

It was hard to imagine that fate had reserved them just for him, a crook with a marginal amount of moral character and a plethora of issues that informed almost every decision he made. And yet here they were, in his house, lounging around like they belonged here, wheedling their way through his carefully constructed walls, cracking the foundation and cutting through the barbed wire. 

Ray returned a minute later carrying a set of large hand weights which Leonard was mildly surprised to find he carried without issue. Behind the sofa was a fireplace and on either side, thick comfortable recliners. Ray sat on the edge of one, setting the weights on the floor and stripping of his long sleeved shirt, revealing the black tank top underneath. 

_ “Fuck.” _ Leonard cursed in his head. Who would have thought the fucking geek would be so well defined. “What are you doing?” he asked, going for incredulous and sticking somewhere around strangled. It was official, he was becoming as flappable as Barry Allen. 

“A little work out to get the blood pumping. Warms ya up and ya don’t have to waste hot water.” Ray explained without looking over at him. He leaned down and picked up one of the weights, beginning a set of bicep curls. By the third set, Leonard realized he was staring and quickly shook himself out of it, finishing off his beer and focusing on a chip in the wall paint across the room. 

Ray moved through a few sets with each arm and then set the weights aside. Leonard found himself releasing the tension he’d been holding since Ray had started, only to tense again as Ray moved to the floor, just within Leonard’s eye line and started a series of exercises that involved an impressive display of upper body and core strength. Leonard did his best not to stare, he really did, but he was only human. 

Ray was in the middle of some overly complicated maneuver when Sara came back downstairs, this time barefoot in her jeans and, god help him, that was definitely one of his sweaters; far too big for her, the neck hanging off of one shoulder and unless her bra was strapless, she was not wearing one. Her attention was on Ray as she entered, and she reached out her leg and nudged him with her foot. 

“Hey, fix your posture you’re gonna hurt yourself.” he told him. Ray slipped out of the pose, looking up at her curiously. 

“What’s wrong with it?”

“Your back is too stiff, you’ll strain the disks in your spine if you aren’t careful.” she explained. “What are you even doing anyway?” 

“Working out.” Ray replied without hesitating, getting to his feet. “Figured you warm up in the shower, I warm up with a bit of exercise.” 

“Uh huh.” she said, watching him carefully. That goofy grin wasn’t fooling her. “Well, why don’t you go clean up and I’ll find something to make for dinner.” she suggested. 

“Sounds good.” he bounded up the stairs like an excited puppy.

When he was gone Sara turned to Leonard who still looked a little tense despite Ray being out of sight. She grinned at him. “I honestly didn’t think he had it in him.” she said. Leonard's gaze snapped to her. 

“Well, you have to figure that suit probably weighs a ton.” he replied absently. 

“No, Len, I knew he was fit. I’m talking about all of this.” she gestured to the weights he’d left on the floor. He still looked confused. She rolled her eyes. “Master Tactician my ass.” she muttered. “He was messing with you, Leonard.” still nothing. “Showing off? Ya know, trying to get you all worked up.” 

His eyes narrowed and she knew he finally understood. “Is that right? Well, two can play that game.” he replied, unfolding himself from the chair. 

She snorted, then quickly wiped the smile off her face. “I’m sure you can.” it wasn’t teasing like it might of been if she had been speaking to Ray, in fact, it fell a bit flat. 

“What’s that supposed to mean?” he questioned, following her into the kitchen. 

“Exactly what it sounded like. I’m agreeing with you.” she opened the fridge, sifting through the contents for the first time. 

“No, you said the words, but you had a tone. You didn’t actually mean them.” 

Sara looked up at him almost pleadingly, like she knew he was right and didn’t want to explain herself. He didn’t back down. 

Sara sighed, closing the fridge. “Look, we all have issues okay. I still have this thing inside me, Ray spent most of his childhood alone, and you… well…” he didn’t respond, simply crossed his arms and waited for her to continue. “I just… we all have our own ways of dealing with those things. Ray overcompensates for all those years he thought he wasn’t wanted and you wear armor, both physically and metaphorically. I’m not saying I don’t think you could seduce him, I have every confidence you could, in fact I really don’t think Ray knows what he’s playing with here. This isn’t like that Russian scientist though, this isn’t a mission, or a one night stand. Ray and I are going to be around for a very long time and as soon as you show him that side of you, you can’t go back. He’s going to know what your capable of and he’s not going to let you retreat behind your walls again.” she sighed again. “So, if you want to play this game, you need to make sure your ready for what happens when you win.” 

The look on Leonard’s face could very well have been mistaken for pouting. Sara knew better though, so she turned away and began the search for dinner again. 

“And what about you?” he finally spoke up. 

“What about me?” 

“Are you ready to let go?” he asked. 

“Who says I haven’t already?”

“Cuddling with him and being tactile to make up for leaving him when you first met is not the same thing as letting go. You talk about the monster inside of you like it’s a separate entity, but I see the look in your eyes, you don’t actually believe that. You think you’re the monster and you don’t deserve this. You’ve got one foot out the door, despite your flirting and the way you coddle him.” he paused, leaning into her personal space, effectively boxing her in against the counter. “So how about I make you a deal?” he continued. “If I work on my issues, you work on yours and we’ll see if either of us deserves him.” 


	2. Part 2

Stranded 

Part 2

xXx

Ray didn’t know what had happened while he was in the shower, but the atmosphere had changed by the time he came back down. Leonard didn’t seem any more closed off than usual, in fact he actually appeared more relaxed. Sara on the other hand was distracted. He’d try to start up a conversation and she would speak with him, but gone was her flirty tone or her tactile nature. As discreetly as he was capable, he stole glances back and forth between them, but no answers presented themselves. 

After dinner, they got comfortable in the living room again. Sara had apparently dug through the stacks of DVDs in the office upstairs and picked a few she wanted to watch. Ray wasn’t a big fan of slasher flicks, but Leonard didn’t complain so he didn’t say anything either. As Axel disappeared through the rubble of the collapsed mine, talking to the ghost in his head and threatening retribution against the residents of Valentine Bluffs, Sara stood from the sofa and stretched. 

“I’m going to head to bed.” she told them, turning off the movie. “I’ll see you guys in the morning.” and with that she was gone. No fanfare, no flirting, just gone. 

“Is she alright?” Ray asked when she was out of sight. Leonard looked over his shoulder and up the stairs where she had disappeared. 

“She’s tough. She’ll be fine.” 

“Did something happen while I was in the shower?” 

Leonard smirked. “Yeah, I learned that knife skills don’t equate cooking skills,” he told him. “and we should never let Sara cook.” 

Ray had a feeling Leonard was keeping something from him, but he let it go. He’d pushed enough for one day. Not long after, Ray headed up to bed himself, setting up the pull out in the office and drifting off to sleep. 

A few hours later Leonard was pretty sure Ray was trying to kill him. It was the only explanation for why the lovable scientist was crawling into his bed at two in the morning, effectively pulling him out of a very detailed dream involving said scientist and the woman across the hall. 

“What are you doing?” he complained groggily. 

“It’s freezing in the office. The radiator vent is blocked.” he replied, pulling the thick comforter around him and effectively burrowing into the pillows. 

“Why don’t you go to Sara’s room?” 

“I tried,” Ray continued his voice muffled. “I think I startled her out of a nightmare cause she threw a knife at me.” he sounded disgruntled and Leonard couldn’t blame him for that. He’d have to remember to check on her when he got up later. 

“Fine, but if you snore I’m kicking you out.” 

“Kay.”

xXx

Sleep left Leonard slowly, the warm lethargy of a rare good night's sleep settling into his bones. It was only as he became fully aware of his surroundings that he noticed the weight over his waist and at his back. He tensed, ready to fight, but then the weight shifted and a rush of breath tickled the back of his neck. He cursed under his breath, ready to throw Ray off, only to stop as Sara’s voice played over in his mind. She hadn’t been challenging him last night, simply stating facts, but it had felt like a challenge. Leonard wasn’t a big fan of being told he couldn’t do something, or rather, being told he was holding himself back. 

Leonard could count the number of times on one hand that he’d had any sort of emotional attachment to someone in a romantic sense. Most of them were fleeting romances. People he’d found fascinating and chosen to make time with. Alexa was the last one, that particular relationship ending badly and turning him off of anything long term for a good long while. 

That of course didn’t compare to the torment he felt the day he realized,  _ “Actually, I’ve been dead for a year”  _ was, in fact, dead. He always assumed it was a joke, like they were in hiding, or faked their death. He wasn’t prepared for the gut wrenching realization that it wasn’t a joke or a ploy, they had actually died, and the fact that it would be a part of their first conversation did nothing to alleviate that pain. There was too much room to second guess events. 

And then he’d met her and he nearly fell on his face when he missed a step. She seemed amused by it, especially when he pulled himself together to answer her. There was a moment of joy that burst in his chest and he wondered in that moment if that was normal, if everyone felt that way when they met their soulmates. And then he met Raymond Palmer and while he was physically attracted to the man, he didn’t feel that rush, which led him to believe it had more to do with finding out she was alive rather than anything else. 

They’d agreed to take things slow. To see where they ended up and that’s what they had done over the last month, or however long it was on a timeship (he really hated thinking about it). Sara, he could tell was doing her best to relax around them, not hesitating to be liberal with her physical affection. It seemed to help, like she could cuddle up to Ray after a few drinks and suddenly forget all about the monster she thought was inside her, or the things she had done. He wouldn’t lie, he hadn’t exactly felt good about calling her out on any of that, but as much as he hated to admit it, they both needed to work through their emotional baggage if they were going to make this work. And from the looks of it, she wanted it to work as much as he hoped it would. 

_ “Two can play this game.” _ he thought, carefully shifting around. Ray was pressed along the length of him, his extra inch and a half giving him a bit of an edge. He pressed back gently with his hips, finding Ray semi erect in the sweatpants he’d borrowed. Ray moaned softly in his sleep and moved minutely, his hand falling a little lower, his fingers getting caught under the edge of Leonard’s shirt. Leonard felt the pads of Ray’s fingers brush lightly just below his navel and resisted the urge to react. 

Leonard waited, making sure that Ray wasn’t going to move again before he repeated the motion a little harder this time. Ray didn’t moan this time but he did huff. Leonard did it again, and again, and again until finally he felt Ray stir. He closed his eyes, feigning sleep as he felt Ray wake, first slowly then all at once. He tensed against Leonard’s back and Leonard bit back a smirk. 

“Shit.” Ray breathed, his voice low. If he wasn’t already awake, he was sure he wouldn’t have heard it at all. He forced himself not to laugh as Ray carefully pulled away, slipping out of bed, no doubt with some difficulty with the distinct flow of blood to a certain appendage. 

He heard Ray’s footsteps softly pad across the hardwood and then the door opened; “Shit.” Ray breathed. 

“There you are.” Sara’s voice sounded and Ray shushed her. “Why are you in Leonard’s room?” she questioned, now whispering as the door closed. He didn’t hear anything else for a few minutes, at least not until the shower turned on across the hall, and the bedroom door opened again. The opposite side of the bed dipped and then;

“Evil, evil man.” Sara’s voice was soft against his ear and it was so unexpected he couldn’t stop the shutter. 

He smirked. “I don’t know what you’re talking about, birdie.” he didn’t roll over and he didn’t open his eyes as she spread out beside him, pressing against his back in much the same way Ray had. 

“I’m sure you don’t.” she replied. “What was he even doing in here?” 

“The vent in the office is blocked, he said it was freezing.” Leonard told her. 

“Why didn’t he come into my room?” she was amused to say the least and their conversation about what Ray had been up to yesterday came to mind. 

“He said you threw a knife at him.” 

Sara tensed, and Leonard could literally feel her mood shift. “Fuck.” she breathed. “I guess that wasn’t a nightmare then.” she pulled away, laying out on her back on the other side of the bed. 

Leonard peeked over his shoulder at her. She had her eyes closed and was trying to slow her breathing. 

“Hey,” he said, finally turning over. “Don’t do that Sara.” he continued, reaching out to her. He curled an arm around her waist, pulling her against him again. 

“I could have hurt him.”

“But you didn’t.”

“But I  _ could have _ .”

“But you _ didn’t _ .” he sighed. “He’s fine, Sara. Aside from the raging boner that is. I can’t imagine that cold shower is going to feel all that great in this weather.” 

Sara snorted, turning her head to bury her face in his shoulder. “He’ll just have to work out some more I guess.” 

“God help me.” he mumbled over her head. 

She chuckled. “I see you’re working through your issues already.” 

Leonard smirked. “Gonna have to catch up, Canary.” 

Sara craned her neck back to look at him. “Was that a challenge Mr. Snart?” 

Was it? Yeah, he supposed it was. Last night hadn’t been one, but the more he thought about it the more he realized this may be the perfect way to help them all. Plus, he couldn’t exactly allow Ray to go around thinking he had the upper hand on him. “Yes, it is? You up for it?”

Sara smirked, though he could see a bit of hesitance. “Bring it on.” She finally said, moving to get comfortable next to him. 

They laid there in silence for a bit until; “I guess I should get up and check in with Gideon.” 

“Or…” Leonard suggested. 

“I could just go back to sleep?” 

“Good call.” 

It just sort of dawned on him as they laid there in silence. He hadn’t even thought about it, hadn’t flinched away when she got close, or second guessed his response to pull her closer when she was beating herself up. For a moment he thought maybe he would have the urge to pull away again, to put some distance between them, but it never came. Maybe he had a better chance of making it through this challenge after all. 

Leonard was almost asleep again when he heard the bedroom door open. He peeked an eye open to find Ray standing in the doorway. He looked hesitant, like he wasn’t sure if he should leave or if he was welcome. Leonard was tempted to string him along, see how long he would stand there before making up his mind, but he really just wanted to go back to sleep. 

“Just gonna stand there, boy scout?” he asked. 

“Eagle Scout.” Ray replied, his voice layered over Sara’s much more tired drawl of the same response. Leonard rolled his eyes. It was just the kick Ray needed though, as he moved forward, crawling into bed on Sara’s other side. She flinched away violently as he tried to cuddle up to her. 

“Fuck Ray! Did you use any hot water?” she exclaimed trying to get away from him and failing as Leonard blocked her retreat. “You’re freezing.” she clung to Leonard, trying to seep the warmth out of him to stave off the chill on Ray’s skin. He grinned, scooting closer and boxing her in against Leonard. Leonard grumbled as she tried to climb over him, holding her securely around the waist to keep her from escaping. 

When she realized she wasn’t going to get away without potentially hurting them, she huddled down, curling up against Leonard and whining as Ray curled around her in return. 

xXx

Ray had been having a pretty great dream. Sara and Leonard were there, they were in his loft in Star City, it was snowing outside, much the same way it was in the waking world. There was a fire burning in the fireplace and they were all curled up together on a makeshift bed made of blankets and pillows in front of it. It was very picturesque and quite frankly cliche, but it was perfect. 

They had just been lying there side by side, enjoying the quiet and the calm when Sara decided to turn their lazy day into a lazy exercise in stamina. The details were a little vague but it was obvious what they were doing and he felt a level of intimacy he hadn’t felt in a long time. It was amazing in every sense of the word and as consciousness found him, Ray cursed it’s terrible timing. And then he cursed again when he realized why the dream had felt so real. 

Morning wood was a natural reaction for men, Ray was no different. He’d had his fair share of it since he’d hit puberty at fourteen. If he’d had it when he was alone he dealt with it. If he had it when he wasn’t he either dealt with it in private or got a little assistance. He’d never had it when he was sharing a bed with a man who he hadn’t made it to that level with before, however. Which was a problem, especially considering that he had crawled into bed with said man in the middle of the night because it was too cold in his room, and despite said man being a bit of flirt, he was standoffish when it came to emotions. 

Leonard liked his personal space, he went to great lengths to ensure he had it, and while Ray had been teasing the older man the day before, he was not prepared to deal with the consequences of him finding them like this. So as carefully as he could manage, Ray extracted himself from the covers and as quietly as possible, made his way toward the door. 

Ray opened the door, only to stop short, cursing as he found Sara on the other side. “There you are.” she said, and Ray cringed at the volume quickly shushing her. “What are you doing in Leonard’s room?” she continued, whispering this time as he stepped through the door and closed it behind him. 

“Nothing.” he replied a little too quickly. Sara looked at him suspiciously. He side stepped around her, heading for the bathroom between her room and his across the hall. A cold shower was in his future and he was not looking forward to it. 

“Are you alright?” she asked him and he stopped short in the doorway, half turning to look back at her. 

“Yeah, why wouldn’t I be?” he questioned. She simply shrugged looking far too amused in his opinion. When it didn’t appear that she was going to say anything else, he stepped into the bathroom and closed the door making a beeline for the shower. It was torture standing under the cold spray, and he stood there as long as he could before it became too much for him. 

Ray fought off the chills as he dried and redressed, suddenly wishing he wasn’t bulkier than Leonard, so he could borrow a sweater from him like Sara had. 

When Ray was finished he stepped out of the bathroom and headed downstairs, searching for Sara. She wasn’t anywhere downstairs that he could tell, so he headed back upstairs to check the room she was staying in. When she was there either, there was really only one place left to check. 

Ray didn’t know what he expected to find when he opened Leonard’s door. He was sure it wouldn’t be his soulmates in bed, Sara on her back, her face pressed to Leonard shoulder and Leonard holding her close around the waist. They were… cute. In fact, it was kind of hard to believe they were two very dangerous individuals when they were curled up like this, looking so peaceful together. 

In the light of day, Ray got a good look around Leonard’s bedroom. It was neat, almost compulsively so. Everything was put away, even the clothes he wore the day before were out of sight, undoubtedly in the laundry basket in the corner. There was a photograph on top of his dresser, a picture of himself with who he assumed was his sister, both of them much younger. The only thing that wasn’t neatly put away was his cold gun, which sat on the bedside table within easy reach. 

“Just gonna stand there, boy scout?” Leonard’s voice broke him from his thoughts and he was so startled he replied without thinking. 

“Eagle Scout.” he said, just as Sara replied the same. But he didn’t argue, getting in on Sara’s other side and pressing himself along her side. She startled them both when she flinched away. 

“Fuck Ray! Did you use any hot water?” she exclaimed, attempting to climb over Leonard to get away from him. “You’re freezing.” she continued as she clung to Leonard. 

He didn’t really know why his first thought was how she knew he’d had a cold shower, but it was and then he noticed Leonard’s smirk. He knew, it was the only explanation. He knew full well why Ray had left, hell, he’d probably been awake when he crawled out of bed. 

_ “And so the game continues.” _ he thought as he grinned, scooting closer and boxing her in against Leonard. Leonard grumbled as she tried to climb over him, holding her securely around the waist to keep her from escaping. She gave up after a few minutes, undoubtedly realizing that neither of them were going to let her go.

**Current Score: Sara 0, Ray 1, Leonard 1**

xXx

The intimacy thing seemed to be working out fairly well. If he didn’t think about it too much that is. Which Leonard was sure wasn’t exactly what Sara had in mind. But it was a start he supposed. He wasn’t foolish enough to think this would be easy for him. He had a lot of baggage and a whole lot of issues, but surprisingly enough he found he really wanted this to work. Maybe he was naive to hope he deserved them, but he knew he wanted them and Leonard was known for taking what he wanted. 

It was nearly noon when they all crawled out of bed feeling well rested. Sara tottered off to the bathroom first, quickly showering and changing back into her jeans and yet another shirt Leonard had not seen her pilfer. He wouldn’t lie, it was a bit of a turn on knowing she was an excellent thief as well. Who knows, maybe if they had found each other at different times in their lives she would have made a great partner in crime. 

In the kitchen, Sara was pouting across the table, staunchly refusing to acknowledge either of them, even when Ray set a heaping plate of eggs and bacon down in front of her. It was cute, finding out that she was not, in fact, aware that she couldn’t cook and that it was not normal to blacken the ceiling above the stove with smoke soot while you did nothing more than boil water. She of course found all of this out when they refused to let her cook breakfast. Dinner the night before had been passable, but only because Leonard had been in the background fixing everything when she turned her back.

After breakfast, Sara checked in with the Gideon. There were no changes as of yet, but as soon as anything happened, she would let them know. With that bit of knowledge they were left to their own devices for the rest of the afternoon. Unfortunately that left them with very little to do. Leonard seemed fine with a book and Ray was tinkering with his suit, but Sara didn’t like to sit still for very long unless she absolutely had to and with her options limited she was forced to improvise. 

There was a section of the living room left open in front of the picture window. It was in the far corner, just to the right of the television stand. From where Leonard and Ray were sitting they would have an obscured view of her. She’d quickly run upstairs to change into the shorts she’d had slept in the night before and her bra and shirt that she’d been wearing when they got here. Then, just as quickly she went back downstairs and began to warm up with some stretches. 

It wasn’t long before she felt them watching her. She hadn’t even begun to work, biting back a smirk at how easy this was going to be. She stopped long enough to turn as if getting ready to really start, catching both of them looking away quickly. 

“Hey Ray, want to learn how to do those stretches properly?” she asked, clearly catching him off guard. He floundered.

“Um… sure.” he finally agreed, getting up, leaving his armor spread out on the floor. He stepped up beside her, the contrast in their heights never more obvious than when they stood side by side. 

What followed, Leonard realized, was a perfectly choreographed dance of stretches that neither he nor Ray were prepared for. Sara, as it turned out, was a very hands on teacher, physically correcting Ray’s stances and showing him how to move from one to the other. All of which involved her running her hands all over his body, which Ray was clearly affected by, if his attempt to remain decent whenever she wasn’t looking was anything to go by. 

Leonard wasn’t fairing much better. Whatever he expected as retaliation, it wasn’t this. That was a mistake he would be sure not to make again. He’d never underestimate her ability to multitask either. While it was clear to him that she was working them both up, she was actually teaching Ray the moves, and putting the work in to help him. 

At some point Ray couldn’t take it anymore, equal parts exhausted, despite how in shape he was, and unable to stand up to her teasing, stood up, taking a deep breath. He was sweating profusely and looked like he could use a long shower and an even longer nap. 

“Done already?” Sara asked, coming out of a particularly twisted pose. 

“Yeah, ya wore me out.” he replied completely missing Sara’s smirk. She turned to glance at Leonard to find he’d shifted his position to better see them. He caught her eyes and glared, realizing belatedly that he had been caught. 

“Want to give it a try Len?” 

Leonard cleared his throat, shifting in his seat. It did not escape her notice that his book was laying across his lap, instead of in his hand where he could read it. “Thanks, but I assure you, I’m plenty flexible already.”  he replied in his lazy drawl. 

The innuendo was not lost on Ray, who Leonard assumed was still amped up on what Sara had done to him, and Leonard smirked. 

Sara shrugged. “Suit yourself.” she replied, getting back into position and then, with a flexibility neither of them could fathom, bent all the way back, the palms of her hands and the soles of her feet, flat on the floor. 

“I need a glass of water.” Ray said abruptly, turning on his heels and nearly tripping over the pieces of his suit as he headed for the kitchen. 

“Me too.” Leonard muttered.

When they were both gone, Sara came out of the pose and smirked.     

**Current Score: Sara 2, Ray 1, Leonard 2**

xXx

Leonard finds Ray leaning against the counter next to the sink, chugging a glass of water. He has to physically force himself not to watch him. It wouldn’t have mattered anyway, Ray was no longer thinking with his small head, his eyes unfocused as he stared at a spot on the floor.

“What are you thinking about so hard?” Leonard asked bluntly. 

Ray looked up, his eyes still unfocused. “Sara.” he simply said.

“That was pretty impressive.” Leonard concedes, making his way over to the kitchen table and taking a seat. Ray isn’t far behind. 

“No, not that, although, yeah, that was… something.” 

“What then?”

Ray hesitated. Whatever he had to say he wanted to be sure to articulate it correctly. “I’m worried about her. Last night… last night was terrifying and I guess I’m just wondering if she has nightmares like that all the time.” 

It wasn’t exactly where he thought this conversation was going, but the subject had crossed his mind a time or two. “Given how much she naps during down time and the fact that she’s usually the first one up in the morning, probably.” 

“I wish there was something we could do to help her.” Ray replied. 

So did Leonard, honestly. “I think the fact that your worried about it at all would mean more to her than anything.” 

Ray hums, which isn’t really an answer but he isn’t sure what to say to that. Truth be told he just wants to do something, anything to help her. He couldn’t imagine the things that haunted her, the things she had seen. He still had nightmares about Anna’s death, but none of them ended with him throwing a knife at whoever woke him up from them. Maybe he could talk to Gideon about helping her. There had to be some kind of future technology, a medical treatment that could help her get through her traumas better. 

Ray smirked, finally looking up at Leonard. 

“What are you doing?” Leonard asked suspicious. 

“Just thinking.” he replied, his expression never changing. 

“Well stop it.” Ray put his hands up in defense, but he was still far too amused for Leonard’s taste. “Seriously, what are you doing?” 

“I’m just thinking, it’s nice to see this thoughtful, caring side of you, that’s all.” 

Ray assumed this was a moment he could take advantage of. Confident that Leonard would grow uncomfortable and back off, leaving the field open for Ray to make his move. He should know better than to underestimate Leonard Snart. 

Leonard’s answering smirk was different this time, as he leaned across the table. Ray would almost call it lascivious. “I think you’ll find I’m full of surprises, Boy Scout.”

Ray just barely managed to gulp out “Eagle” before Leonard was gone. 

**Current Score: Sara 2, Ray 1, Leonard 3**


End file.
